Inflatable structure



w. A. BARY INFLATABLE STRUCTURE' Jung' '3, 1958 5.Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Ap'ri; 28. 1955 A INVENToR. WOLDEMAR n. BARY 'En C.

ATTORN EY June 3, 1958 w. A. BARY 2,837,101

INFLATABLE STRUCTURE Filed April 28. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 3 24 L 4 ,2a tlrl :"I'

E I i i Y i 5" 3/ E l l INVENTOR. WOLDE MAR H. BHRY ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 w. A. BARYv INFLATABLE STRUCTURE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 28. 1955 INVENToR. woLDEMAR AKERRY ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 w. A. BARY INFLATABLE STRUCTURE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 28. 1955 v. m n m wo'LbeMnR A. BARY ATTORNEY June 3, 1958 w, A, BARY 2,837,101

INFLATABL STRUCTURE' Filed April 2a. 1955 ssheeis-sheet 5 om m m m WOLDEMAR ABARY ATTORNEY United States Patent MiceI 1 2,837,101 INFLATABLE STRUCTURE Woldemai-A. Bary, New York, N.`Y., assignor to -NinalBar-y, New York, N. Y. Application April28, 1955, Serial No. 504,425 8 Claims. (Cl. 13S- 1) The present invention relates to an inflatable structure and, more particularly to such structure which is adapted to be used as the wall and roof and/or door of various forms of enclosures for .sheltering or housing personnel or animals or protecting equipment, apparatus Another object lis to provide such enclosures which. are light in weight, economical in construction, fast in erection and disassembly, and can be `stored and transported when collapsed .in .a minimum of space.

Another object is to provide such enclosures which .are so constructed and .arranged as to prevent complete collapse thereof because of localized failure -or deation.

Another object is lto provide such enclosures which have .inherent insulation qualities 4and excellent dielectric characteristics.

A further object is .to .provide such enclosures which can be constructed entirely vor yin part .of an inflatable, unitary structure .in accordance with this invention.

Other and. further .objects will be obvious .upon an understanding of .the illustrative embodiment about :to be described, or :will be lindicated in the appended claims, and various .advantages not referred to herein will occur Ito one .skilled .in .the art .upon employment .of theinvention in practice.

.ln .accordance with .the present invention, the fore- ,going objects ,generally .are accomplished ,bj/providing an inilatable structure `which comprises a .plurality vof .inilatahle ,tubular wall elements having fan arched section, or are adapted to be arched, with .the 4elements .arranged side by side in parallel relation to e-ach other and .each element having an inlet `adjacent .one -end thereof Yfor .admitting inflation .medium thereto .to stiien 4'the same, .oor .structure having l.the Telements connected thereto yto maintain .the ends .thereof -ina predetermined .spaced-relation, and means interconnecting the elements in the .aforementioned side by side relation, whereby adjacent elements are capable .of .supporting eachother.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is aplan'v'iewoffanigl-oo type fenclosure embodying the present invention.

Eig. 2 is aside view, partly in section, vof theienoliosure ,shown in Fig. '1.

Fig. 3 isa ,-top plan view, partly .in section, ,of :a guen- .set .type enclosure.

.-Eig. 4 .is -an end elevational view, -partly in rse'ction, so .thelenolosure shown in Fig. 3.

Eig. 5 plan view, partly in section, of anrencl'osure of the combined igloo and quonset type.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary, left :side lelevational -view of the enclosure shown in Fig. 5.

:Eig."l is fan end view., .partlyin section'. of the .enciosure shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

-or inner enclosures.

2,337,10l .Patented June 3, 1958 Fig. `8 isa sectional View taken along the line 8-8 on Fig. 5.

Fig. 9 is a stepped sectional view taken along the line 9-9 von Fig. y8. Y

Fig. 10 lisza fragmentary plan view of an inatable e1e ment apart from :the enclosure structure.

Fig. 1l is a plan `view of van inflatable unit adapted to provide the wall yand/or floor ofthe enclosure.

Fig. l2 is a stepped sectional view taken along thev line 12-12 on Fig. flfl.

Fig. 13 isa sectional aliew taken along the line y13--13 on Fig. l1.

Fig. 14 is a transverse :sectional view of an enclosure wherein the inflatable funit shown in Figs. l1 land 13 provides the wall thereof.

Fig. 15 is an -end -v-iew of the enclosure shown in Fig. 1=4.

Fig. 1.6 is azsectional view taken along the line 16-16 on Fig. ll5.

Fig. 17 isa fragmentary sectionalview of an enclosure wherein the indatable unit shown in Figs. 1l and 13 provides both the wall and 'iioor thereof.

Referring =to the fdrawings in detail and, more particuvlarly-to Figs. 1 .Ito 5'., linflatable structures of several types are shown, of which each includes a iloor section 26, stakes 21 for securing thefloor section kto the ground 22, an inflatable enclosure-section 24 .secured at its 'lower ledge 'to the 'door section 20, ic'ords 25 secured 'to the enclosure section 24 and tied to the stakes 2i, a pair `of upright vv.poles 26, fandcordsi27 secured tothe enclosure section at the itop .28 thereof for supporting the enclosure above the -oortsec't'ioninan'emergency during high winds or excessive snow.

ln-each of :these views, Ithe enclosure section comprises an inner wall L30, an outer wall 31 and a plurality .of inflatable, :tubular arched 'wall elements '32 arranged side by side in parallel relation to each other inthe -manner described hereinafter.

The structure 'shown in Figs. 1 -and 2 is of the igloo type, and here the elements 32 have arched sections lof progressively tvarying radii lto provide a hemispherical or dome-like roof.

A doorway 33 Vis provided at opposite 'sides thereof.

The structure, sh'ownlin Figs. 3 and 4, is ofthe quonset type .and fhere the elements S2 have arched sections of equal radii to provide a semi-cylindrical roof. This structure is equipped with semi-circular end walls 34 which comprise inner and outer sections 35 and 36.spaced apart to provide an 'insulating air space 37 `therebetween and formed with a `doorway 38 and windows 39.

The structure shown in Figs. 5 to 7 has the igloo .and quonset features, 'just described, combined therein, the middle section being of quonset construction and the end sections being likc'the `sides of the igloo structure formed with doorways 33.

In Figs. 8 to l0, the construction and arrangement of the elements 32 are "illustrated in detail. As shown, the pliable 'inner 'and outer walls 30 and 31, respectively, have their lower edges secured to the fioor ZG at 4l?, and are interconnected .by pliable longitudinally extending, circumferentially spaced straps 41 which provide ,pockets for receiving the lements .32 to maintain .the same ,in side by side relation, whereby adjacent elements -are capable of supporting ,each other. This arrangement provides for .attachingthe elements to the oor `to maintain their ends fin .a predetermined spaced relationship. lf desired, the .ends .of .the -elements 32 are formed with fasteners 42 for further securing the same to the outer The elements by being so arranged can E:be removed and replaced individually in the event of failure thereof by attaching the new element to the 'Evacuation housing l? fastener 42 of the old element and pulling it into place.

In order to inate the elements 32, a manifold 44 (Fig. l) is provided for.V supplying inflation medium from a suitable source (not shown) which is connected to each of the elements by tubes 45. A check valve 46 is connected in each of the tubes 45 to sectionalize the elements and prevent complete deflation of the structure, should one of the elements be punctured or spring a leak. Thus, when one element is so deflated, the ele ments adjacent thereto remain inflated and support the structural section of the deilated element without any material impairment of the structure.

In Figs. 11 to 17, inflatable elements 32 are shown which are part of a unitary assembly adapted to serve as a oor cushion, mat, or as an arch or end wall of an enclosure of the quonset type. These units comprise a pair of complementary sheets secured together and formed with a pair of parallel manifold passageways 50 at opposite sides thereof having the elements connected thereto with alternate elements having one end connected in fluid ow communication with one of the passageways 50. Adjacent elements 32 are interconnected by a zig-zag web 51, whereby adjacent elements are adapted to support each other. an inflation medium supply pipe 52, isolated from each other, so that in the event an element or passageway of one group should fail the other group of elements will not be affected and will remain inated to support the enclosure.

As shown herein, the unit is rectangular and has side borders 54 and end borders 55 -for the purpose about to be described, the end borders being provided with fasteners 56.

In Figs. 14 to 16, the inflatable unit just described is shown with its side borders 54 attached to a oor section at 57 to form an enclosure. The end openings of this enclosure are provided with a pliable wall connected to the unit by the fasteners 56 and to the floor section by fasteners 58. Either one or both of these `walls is formed with slits 59 to provide entrance aps having windows. 60.

In Fig. 17, a fragment of an enclosure is shown wherein the oor section is also provided by a unit formed with inflatable elements 32.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the present invention provides an improved, inflatable structure which is sturdy, light in Weight, and can be of any desired size and a variety of shapes.

The structures shown by Way of example herein may .be used in many fields of application, for example,

1. Military services Hospital units Maintenance shelter Personnel housing Field barracks Field headquarters Weather stations 2. Civilian agencies Red Cross shelter U. N. Displaced Person Civilian defense shelter 3. Domestic uses Hunting Camping Vehicle covers Cabanas Prospecting Construction camps Exploring Boat canopy Surveying Portable garages Greenhouses Beach houses Childrens playhouse Each of the passageways 50 has 4 departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, it is to be understood that all matters are to be interpreted as illustrative and not in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is: A

1. An inflatable structure comprising a plurality of inatable tubular arched wall elements of uniform cross section arranged side-by-side in parallel relation to each other and terminated in spaced apart vertical Vends, said arched wall elements forming a chamber having at least one of said elements of a predetermined radius atits center and having a plurality of said elements of pro gressively reduced radii flanking said central element, each of said elements being individually replaceable and having an ination medium entrance, means for securing ends of said elements in predetermined spaced relation, means for enclosing and interconnecting said elements to maintain the same in side-by-side relation, whereby adjacent elements, when inated, are capable of supporting each other, and means at said spaced apart vertical ends for entering said chamber.

2. Structure according to claim 1, wherein said securing means includes a floor structure adapted to be anchored to ground.

3. Structure according to claim 2, wherein said lloor structure includes an inflatable member.

4. Structure according to claim l, wherein said interconnecting means are straps to enable said elements to be singly replaceable. v

5. Structure according to claim l, wherein said arched wall elements form and arcuate roof and said securing means includes a oor structure adapted to be anchored to the ground.

6. An inflatable structure comprising a plurality of inatable tubular arched wall elements arranged side-byside in parallel relation to each other and each element being individually replaceable'and having an inlet for admitting inilation medium thereto to stilen the same, said arched wall elements terminating in spaced apart vertical ends and said arched wall elements forming a chamber having at least one of said elements of a predetermined radius at its center and having a plurality of said elements of progressively reduced radii ilanking said central element, floor structure having said elements attached thereto to maintain the ends thereof in a predetermined spaced relation, means for enclosing and interconnecting said elements to maintain the same in said side-by-side relation whereby adjacent elements are capable of supporting each other, and means at said spaced apart vertical ends for entering said chamber.

7. Structure according to claim 6, including manifold means in Huid flow connectiony with said inlets of said elements.

8. Structure according to claim 6, including pliable inner and outer Walls and pliable straps connected to said inner wall to provide pockets for receiving said elements and to thereby serve as said interconnecting means.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 511,472 Sumovski Dec. 26, 1893 659,981 McCall Oct. 16, 1900 1,342,234 Smith June l, 1920 2,411,316 Capita Nov. 19, 1946 2,656,844 Kreuzer Oct. 27, 1953 2,657,716 f Ford Nov. 3, 1953 2,698,020 Phane Dec. 28, 1954 2,752,928 Barker July 3, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 244,217 Switzerland Mar. 17, 1947 

